


haunted mind

by nebulera



Series: of beasts [6]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:48:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24889384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nebulera/pseuds/nebulera
Summary: this is a follow-up to something I haven’t written yet hahayay or nay
Relationships: Darth Maul/CT-7567 | Rex
Series: of beasts [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2021009
Comments: 5
Kudos: 52





	haunted mind

Rex wakes quietly, though his heart beats furiously against his chest; there’s wetness building in the corners of his eyes that makes him sit up without any calm until he remembers he’s not alone. Their bed gives off a warmth that felt like safety to him, but he couldn’t stand to be in it right now. His nightmare plagues his consciousness; he couldn’t recall what happened in his head, only that even in sleep he couldn’t escape Vader. Trying not to wake Maul, he pulls himself out from under the covers and drops to the cool floor.

He sits with his back against the side of their bunk, his arms folded and resting over his bent knees. He tries to relax but staring into the darkness of the ship interior brings no comfort to him; harsh, intruding images of a tall, dark being with a red saber emerging from the hidden corners makes Rex flinch and bow his head into his arms like a frightened child.

To his despair, he hears shifting behind him and then the looming presence of an ex-Sith Lord hovering over him. “Captain,” he says.

“Sorry,” Rex says, emerging from his personal cradle, but pointedly not looking in front of him. He drops his knees into a criss cross and stares at his hands. “Didn’t wanna wake you.”

“It’s all right.”

Maul drops to the floor beside him and just stares. He reaches up to brush away the dampness on Rex’s cheek from tears Rex hadn’t noticed. Maul pulls away with a strange look, like he didn’t understand himself. Rex tries not to whimper at the gentleness and the thundering headache that invades his head.

It’s on these nights that he wishes for a do-over, that he never turned away from Maul to confront the unknown. Except, he’d thought he knew the whole time about what happened to his general, and that his likely death at Vader’s hands would be the confirmation that his  _ jetii  _ was dead. In a way, he is, and that is the only way that Rex can have a sound mind over this.

Maul saved him from Vader, from death, because something in the universe righted itself and Maul loved Rex too much to let him go. But he couldn’t save him from the truth that plagued Rex’s nightmares and tainted his old memories.

During the war, he’d respected Anakin Skywalker and would have died for him in a heartbeat. As time went on, though keeping the respect of a soldier, he’d begun to stop only seeing him as his general; they’d become friends and comrades. Brothers, maybe, if they had more time.

He hasn’t spoken to Ahsoka about his confrontation with Vader, hasn’t told her that Maul was right and that Anakin betrayed them. With every passing day, he loses the strength to tell her. Perhaps she’d be better off not knowing. He would have.

Rex knows why Maul had woken. Rex moving with a silent grace wouldn’t have masked his anguish bleeding out into the Force—where once upon a time, Maul had thrived from that sort of thing, now, he couldn’t bear it.

“What—“ Maul cuts himself off. He looks off, trying to find the words and Rex watches him. Even under dim light, his eyes are beautifully striking.

Maul knows what pains him, but doesn’t speak of what Rex is trying to forget. “What can I do to… help you,” he asks instead.

Rex leans over and puts his forehead against Maul’s shoulder, wrapping his arm around his front. It had taken Maul some time to grasp physical contact and just what it meant for him, but he understands what Rex is asking for and takes hold of him.

Rex’s shoulders shake as he silently cries, but he leans into the comfort of those warm arms. He wishes for better dreams tonight or to not dream at all.

**Author's Note:**

> this is a follow-up to something I haven’t written yet haha
> 
> yay or nay


End file.
